M6 shift points

[Prodigal]

Curious what the ideal shift points are for both performance and economy. Around town I generally shift at or below 3000 rpms. I don’t need unwanted attention and just looking to get from A to B. I don’t think this is at all lugging the motor.
Since I’m still under 300 miles total I have not yet tried any real performance launches or hard acceleration but all in good time! What would be the preferred shirt points for this?

Sponsored

 

[sakman84]

Page 19 of your M1 Technical Supplement.

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/...h-1-Supplement-version-1_su_EN-US_11_2020.pdf

 

[Prodigal]

Page 19 of your M1 Technical Supplement.

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/...h-1-Supplement-version-1_su_EN-US_11_2020.pdf

Thanks. I’ll have to pay more attention to the speedo versus the tach.

 

[smokescreens]

My shift points vary pretty wildly. Low rpms in the morning (at least in my sub at 2am) rarely over 3k in the morning when out of the sub. In the afternoon they are normally highier. My mood determines that one, lol. This is my first stick shift car. I drive truck for a living so its strange for me to shift so far past 2400 rpm and i have to keep reminding myself not to float the gears, lol.

 

[murick]

First I was not sure how low could I go RPM wise so was driving around the town 2k-3k RPM sometimes even to 4k. Then I decided to try to follow the Ford recommendations (the green arrow) and noticed I could drive pretty comfortably around 1.5-2k RPM (which means 4-5 gear). This makes the car quieter and the dynamics does not suffer (well, in town it is pretty much the speed limit and traffic) since I just need to go with the flow. Keeping the RPM below 2k also seems to significantly impact the consumption.

When on a free highway or a country road, I usually drive in more dynamic style, basically using the whole range up to 5-6k, using different gears more to play with the tune than to push the power. Occasionally I meet the redline, just to make sure the engine does not get lazy .

 

[Vlad Soare]

For the sake of all that's holy, please, please, do NOT shift like they say in the manual. The very thought of being in fifth at 39 mph, or in sixth at 43, makes me cringe. Whoever wrote that thing deserves to be lapidated.
Just keep the revs between 2000 and 3000 and you'll be fine for fuel economy (well, at least as much as one could reasonably expect from a five-liter V8).

 

[murick]

For the sake of all that's holy, please, please, do NOT shift like they say in the manual. The very thought of being in fifth at 39 mph, or in sixth at 43, makes me cringe.

Alright, I admit being a newbie in a V8 world, and might be asking a stupid question, but why should not I do it?

 

[smokescreens]

Alright, I admit being a newbie in a V8 world, and might be asking a stupid question, but why should not I do it?

Lugging the hell out of the motor. Final drive ratios will effect mph shift points. Rpm is always better to go off of.

 

[murick]

Lugging the hell out of the motor. Final drive ratios will effect mph shift points. Rpm is always better to go off of.

This is a generic advice I would say applies to any engine (unless it is a diesel in a truck), but have you actually driven Mach 1 at those RPMs? It does not feel like lugging at all. I may even speculate that the ECU is tuned for this mode of operation and that A10 is tuned for those low RPMs as well. For cruising around the town of course. The optimal powerband lies elsewhere.

 

[smokescreens]

This is a generic advice I would say applies to any engine (unless it is a diesel in a truck), but have you actually driven Mach 1 at those RPMs? It does not feel like lugging at all. I may even speculate that the ECU is tuned for this mode of operation and that A10 is tuned for those low RPMs as well. For cruising around the town of course. The optimal powerband lies elsewhere.

No i have not. However just because a car is tuned to do something does not make it the best thing for the life of the powertrain. Auto manufacturers are getting squeezed harder and harder to meet EPA standards on emissions. And to meet those sometimes its worse for the vehicle overall. Look at all the smog crap on vehicles and the mess that causes. DEF on diesel engines is a joke. You cant tell me burning more crap is better for the environment.
Maybe at idle for "testing" but no way overall. Old school cars had oil breathers. Now they all are sucking all that oil vapor from the crankcase back into the air intake to gum everything up from point of entry to the intake valves, ect.

Lugging the engine will still have the effect of low oil flow and increased time the bearings spend under load increasing time to break oil film strength.

In all reality we are talking about splitting hairs here. I say do what you think is right for you

 

[smokescreens]

I do think its right in the manual when you go through a tunnel or under a bridge its required to be north of 6000rpm and 80% or more throttle.

If its not in the manual it should be.

 

[Vlad Soare]

I do think its right in the manual when you go through a tunnel or under a bridge its required to be north of 6000rpm and 80% or more throttle.

If its not in the manual it should be.

Absolutely!

 

[WD Pro]

This all seems way to complicated, my dash simply does some weird shit orange light thing when it’s time to change up … ?

WD

 

[murick]

This all seems way to complicated, my dash simply does some weird shit orange light thing when it’s time to change up … ?

WD

This might be a good follow up question: At which RPM you set up your weird shit orange light to go off?

 

[smokescreens]

My weird shit light is red i ignor it 60% of the time everytime

Sponsored